Debriefing at Biosphere Expedition's research team camp in the Dubai Desert Conservation Reserve. Picture: Supplied Source: National Features

Camels prowling the border fence between Dubai and Sharjah. Picture: Peter Gosnell Source: National Features

BEYOND the hyper-developed coastal strip of cosmopolitan Dubai lies an ocean of eroded stone and bedrock ground to powder by seas that have long receded.

Dubai, it turns out, is mostly sand, an endless vista of russet dunes like terracotta swells baked immobile by the Arabian sun. And before arriving in the Middle East's most prominent emirate, I'd not contemplated the evocative power of a truly large amount of really old grit.

One of the seven Trucial sheikdoms of the United Arab Emirates, Dubai I thought is beach lounge cocktail service, gold dust on the complimentary chocolates and Force 10 aircon. But in the emirate's interior, the sands reign.

The geometry of the dunes, the subtleties of contour and tone, all of it produced by no more than the interplay of light, gravity and wind on trillions of minute and homogenous particles after a week in the Dubai Desert Conservation Reserve (DDCR), I was entranced.

The spell was cast early within hours, in fact of my arrival in a hotel foyer on the outskirts of Dubai's adolescent urban sprawl early on a January morning.

There I met my fellow members of Biosphere Expeditions' inaugural Arabian Oryx and Gordon's Wildcat project. Our mission involved camping for eight days in the DDCR, a 225sq km chunk of fenced-off desert owned by the Emirates group.

An award-winning, not-for-profit voluntourism outfit, Biosphere Expeditions runs specialised wildlife conservation ventures to some of the most remote locations on Earth.

Its expeditions allow the curious and the conservation-minded to work alongside scientists in the field, collecting and producing data that enhances our knowledge of the natural world and informs and enhances strategies to preserve endangered species.

If I'd been allergic to grit it might have been tough. But apart from acquiring a new appreciation of the desert, I had too much fun discovering my inner Attenborough to be irritated by sand in my sleeping bag.

But before unleashing the naturalist within, we had to learn basic scientific research skills, which meant that reaching the Biosphere camp deep inside the DDCR was not the end but the start of that first, exhausting day.

There was correct assembly and use of Swarovski viewing scopes, with Biosphere founder Matthias pacing up and down the row of tripods, constantly reminding us as we fumbled with focusing rings that "they are donated and are worth 2000 euros".

There were also range finders and remote cameras whose mechanisms we had to master, the cameras to be positioned adjacent to baits in the hope that wildcats, foxes and other nocturnal denizens of the desert would in effect photograph themselves.

And there were other, equally important skills to acquire, like driving the Land Rovers V8 Discoveries also donated off track and into the treacherous dunes, understanding how to use global positioning systems, compasses, maps and walkie-talkies.

Expedition leaders Malika and Matthias pushed us through the tutorials without a break and by evening we were gathered around the roaring campfire preparing to enjoy the first of what was to be many alcohol-free, vegetarian meals in the days ahead.

The vegetarian menu is part of Biosphere's general conservation-focused ethos and although I swore I would order the biggest steak the nearby Al Maha resort served, I found the omelets our Indian chef prepared each day more than satisfied my protein pangs.

Sufficiently fortified by a pre-dawn breakfast, we set off into the desert every morning in our designated teams in search of wild animals to observe, each team determined to observe more than its rivals.

And within the fenced-off confines of the UAE's first national park reside some of the Arabian Peninsula's rarest animals, including the Arabian oryx and the little-known Gordon's wildcat.

Potentially the inspiration for the unicorn legend, adult Arabian oryx possess luminous white coats, distinct black facial markings and elegant black horns sweeping back more than a metre above their heads. Their calves are hornless, fluffy and the colour of caramel.

The Arabian oryx was all but extinct in the wild by the 1960s. In the 1990s a concerted effort was made to save the species, with the establishment of a captive breeding program at the Phoenix Zoo in Arizona in the US.

Since they were introduced into the DDCR in 2004, the population has swelled to almost 1000 thanks to a lack of predators, limited supplementary feeding and the insistence of Dubai's ruling sheik that the DDCR have a permanent freshwater lake.

The other key aspect of our Biosphere project is to study the Gordon's wildcat, rarer again and far more elusive than the oryx, which are quite accustomed to human observers. We set traps for the cats in the evenings, baiting them with sardines in tomato and chilli sauce and spraying nearby tufts of dune grass liberally with catnip as an added inducement. The first order of business each morning was to check the traps.

The trapping program is designed to help the DDCR scientists get a clearer idea of the wildcat's range and population in the reserve and the relative health of individual animals. It also allows for the removal of feral cats and the identification of hybrids, which the reserve scientists are also keen to purge from the reserve.

And so our eight days passed in pursuit of our endangered quarry. With 6am starts, it was a case of struggling through sand drifts and dunes to reach locations randomly selected by computer. Lugging capture cages and remote cameras to these same designated trap or camera locations. Retrieving cameras and cages. Digging the Land Rovers out of deep sand. Digging them out again five minutes later.

For those who love the outdoors and animals, have a thing for deserts, and who don't mind roughing it and undertaking genuine work for visible results, it's hard to imagine a more satisfying way to spend a week.

Of course, it will help if you can learn to love sand.

Go2

DUBAI

- Getting there

Emirates flies to Dubai from Sydney.See emirates.com/au

From Dubai, connect with Biosphere Expeditions for the journey into the Dubai Desert Conservation Reserve.See biosphere-expeditions.org

- Staying there

When not camping in the Dubai Desert Conservation Reserve, Dubai spoils visitors for choice, and a plethora of 5-star options means prices are competitive, plus the Australian dollar buys plenty of Emirati dirhams.

Biosphere Expedition's Oryx and Wildcat expedition includes an extensive, all-vegetarian menu prepared by an in-situ chef. In addition, Biosphere supplies snacks, sweets and fruit. However, if there is something you cannot do without, take your own supply and be prepared to share.

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